


Underfoot

by LadyDanger420



Series: boyfriend speedrun any% [2]
Category: Half Life VR But The AI Is Self-Aware, The Borrowers - All Media Types
Genre: Black Mesa Sweet Voice, First Meetings, Gen, Interrogation, Panic Attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:48:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26230660
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyDanger420/pseuds/LadyDanger420
Summary: There's a new tenant in the apartment, and Gordon isn't sure how to feel about him.
Relationships: Benrey & Gordon Freeman
Series: boyfriend speedrun any% [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1871818
Comments: 21
Kudos: 198





	1. Chapter 1

Gordon really wasn't sure how to feel about this new resident.

He was big, even for a bean, standing at least half a head taller than the apartment landlord who'd come to show him the place. And he was unnervingly perceptive—the bits of food that Gordon took hadn't gone unnoticed, despite it being little more than crumbs to the man. He'd set up sticky traps around the kitchen, which made getting food more difficult but not impossible.

At least he seemed to be normal in the  _ gone for hours at a time during the day _ department—if Gordon had to spend all day with this scary giant in the apartment, he might just pack up and move to another one. But the guy had a job, it seemed, and when he got home he usually went straight to the bedroom. Hopefully to sleep, but Gordon didn't have any paths over that way to check.

Tonight seemed to be just like the others, which was good because Gordon was dangerously low on food. He'd seen a box of crackers lying on the counter—a staple for borrowers everywhere, crackers could be stored for a long time and were pretty filling too. He just had to get some without being noticed. Easy.

Unfortunately his entrance to the kitchen was on the other side of the room, but that shouldn't be much of a problem. Creeping along the baseboards towards the counter was simple enough, tossing his safety-pin climbing hook to catch on the edge a simple act of muscle memory. A sharp tug to ensure it wouldn't come loose, before he started to climb.

Rolling over the edge of the countertop and taking a moment to catch his breath, Gordon then surveyed the scene before him.

The cracker box was only a few feet away—a fair distance at his size, but nowhere near insurmountable. 

The box was a bit difficult to open, but he managed it. Finally, his bounty.

He put two crackers in his bag, before pausing and going back for a third. Better to be prepared, after all. Closing the box back up was important, too—he didn't want to leave any sign he'd been here.

Rappelling down the counter was easier than climbing it had been, even with the extra weight throwing off his balance. A practiced flick dislodged the safety pin from its position, falling to the floor with a little  _ clink _ .

"Okay, great. Just gotta get back home and I'll be good!" Gordon mumbled to himself—a bad habit that he'd been unable to break, despite his best efforts. At least the bean was probably asleep and wouldn't hear it.

He could just cut across the middle of the room to save time, too.

Gordon was in the middle of the kitchen floor when a silhouette appeared in the doorway. He froze, panic turning his blood to ice as he stared at the bean—who should've been asleep, and plenty loud enough for Gordon to hear approaching before now, but that wasn't important in the moment.

_ "Dad!" _

_ "Joshua,  _ **_run_ ** _!" _

A foot hit the ground barely an inch away from him, jarring him out of the memory and eliciting a panicked shout.

He immediately regretted it, as the bean shifted, seeming to have no trouble seeing through the dark. Gordon scrambled back away from the grasping hand coming in his direction, but bumped into the bean's other foot in his hasty retreat.

He was trapped.

Fingers larger than he was wrapped tight around him, pinning his arms to his sides despite his struggle. His ears were plastered flat against his head, eyes wide as he frantically squirmed in hopes of somehow breaking free.

He'd been lucky enough to escape a bean's clutches once before, and he doubted it would happen again.

"whuh?" He heard the bean mumble, holding the hand currently keeping him trapped up to his face.

Gordon's heart nearly stopped at the sight of softly glowing eyes peering at him curiously, catlike pupils blown wide in the dark. The bean tipped his head to the side slightly, a confused look on his face.

"yo, what the fuck? got cute mice dudes in my apartment now?"

The sight of needle-sharp teeth flashing in the faint light from the bean's eyes as he talked was officially too much for Gordon's panicked system.

His eyes rolled back and he collapsed, falling limp in the bean's grasp.


	2. Chapter 2

Benrey stared at his fist in confusion. He was pretty sure humans didn't come in miniature, and especially not with big mouse-like ears. He clicked the light on—not really necessary, since he could see in the dark just fine, but it made it easier. Probably.

Yep, that's. Definitely a tiny man. Who had just completely stopped moving-

"oh shit, did i kill him?" He mumbles, slightly panicked-

No, he can still feel a racing heartbeat fluttering against his fingers.

"yoooo, what the fuck bro."

Opening his hand, he peers curiously at the little person. Perfectly-formed human hands resting lightly on his palm by the dude's side-

Huh. He was kinda cute, actually. Dressed in a big orange sweater and brown pants, curly brown hair pulled back with a twist tie, he could almost be mistaken for a doll if not for the faint rise and fall of his chest.

Benrey pinched an ear between his fingers—it flicked out from his loose grasp automatically. They were definitely real, and the tail laid in a loose curve against his palm probably was too.

_ "holy shit." _ He whispered, eyes wide.

Well. He definitely had questions, but probably wouldn't be getting any answers until the dude woke up.

Pulling a chair out from the kitchen table, he sits down, carefully depositing the little man on the surface in front of him.

The little bag the guy has is his next target, hoping for at least some answers.

It's got a couple of crunched-up crackers and a safety pin with some yarn tied to it inside. The crackers were most likely not crunched before he grabbed him, which makes him feel a little guilty, before he comes to a realization.

This little dude must be the reason food went missing.

Benrey feels kinda bad now, and resolves to get rid of the sticky traps he'd put out. This isn't a mouse problem like he was thinking it was.

Setting the bag to the side, he turns his focus once more to the man. He's got an exacto blade tucked into his belt—Benrey's glad he didn't get a chance to use it. Not that it would cause any permanent damage, but it would still be major sucks.

Tapping his fingers on the tabletop, he rests his chin in his hand, staring curiously at the little dude who's  _ still _ not waking up. Lame.

Well…

Benrey's been around humans for a while now, he (mostly) knows what's cool and what's uncool in the physical contact department. But finding a mouse dude living in your apartment kind of breaks all the norms, so it's fine.

His hair looks really soft, anyways. 

Sliding his free hand closer, he runs his fingers over the little grey-streaked ponytail. It's just as soft as he thought it would be.

His ears are soft too, covered in short brown fur the same color as his hair.

His feet are weird, little paws with short, slightly curved claws instead of nails. They're still kinda cute, though. Tiny paw beans.

Leaning back in his chair, Benrey tips his head back and hums a few orbs of Sweet Voice—red to rust means I'm curious.

"Mnh." The little groan immediately snaps his attention back to the little mouse dude, an excited grin on his face.

"yo, you're finally awake!"


	3. Chapter 3

_ Why do I feel like I ran across the whole apartment? _ Was the first thought Gordon had upon regaining consciousness. Every muscle in his body ached for some reason, like he'd been running or something similarly strenuous.

He wasn't even in bed—maybe he'd fallen out, and that's why he hurt? Something about that didn't seem quite right though.

A soft groan escaped him when he moved, reaching up to press a hand to his head.

"yo, you're finally awake!" A loud voice spoke up, and he snapped his eyes open. That sounded like-

Gordon let out a strangled scream, scurrying back away from the bean looming over him, his sharp teeth bared in a menacing grin. He reached towards him, causing Gordon's heart to race again.

"Don't fucking touch me!" He hissed, pulling his knife from his belt and pointing it in the bean's direction. The bean hesitated, eyes narrowing at the sight of the blade.

Gordon swallowed nervously, trying not to let his hands shake. He knew that there was nothing he could really to to defend himself against a bean, but he still wasn't willing to give up without a fight.

After a tense few seconds the bean dropped his hand to the table, tapping his fingers against it.

Gordon wasn't willing to drop his guard so easily, and continued edging away despite the burning sensation on the back of his neck. Once he was pretty sure he was out of reach he lowered the knife slightly, staring back at the bean unblinking.

"you some kinda mouse dude, huh? lil rat boy, scurrying around in the walls? stealing my food?" The bean asked, tilting his head to the side and resting his chin in his hand.

"I don't steal anything!" Gordon retorted hotly, tail lashing behind him.

"uh-huh, yeah, sure. where'd ya get these crackers then?" The bean lifted up his bag with one finger hooked through the strap.

Gordon hadn't even noticed he was missing it until then. His heart sunk to his feet at the sight—his climbing hook was in there, without that he was trapped on the table. Unless he wanted to risk breaking a leg by jumping.

"It's three crackers. You wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't caught me." He was mad, but more than that he was  _ terrified _ . Beans put out traps for mice when they ate their food, but no one knew what happened to borrowers when they got caught. There were rumors, of course—crushed underfoot, trapped in jars to be kept as pets, dissected.

_ Eaten alive. _

“lil thief man, huh. trying to defend himself when the evidence is right here.” The bean grinned wider, dropping his bag to the table and leaning back in his chair.

Gordon swallowed hard, looking from the bag to the bean.

He didn’t have any food left, those crackers were the only thing between him and starving. And now he’d lost even that. If only he hadn’t been so stupid, cutting corners like he did.

“Please, I- I’m sorry-” He begged, not even caring about how pathetic he must look. “I’ll- that’s the only food I have. I just- I don’t wanna  _ die _ .” His voice cracked a little, but he didn't care.

A strange expression flashed over the bean's face—he would almost call it concern, but that  _ couldn't _ be right—and after a few seconds he picked the bag back up, holding it out towards him.

"okay.  _ but _ -" Gordon had started forwards to grab his bag, but flinched back when the bean pulled his hand back a little. "got some questions. trivia rush time, cool?"

He hesitated. One of the most important rules, behind not being seen, was not telling beans about other borrowers. But as far as he knew, no one else lived in this apartment building. And he  _ needed _ that food.

"I- fine." Gordon sighed. It wasn't likely he'd ever see another borrower again, after all. Nobody would know that he broke the rules.

"pog." The bean held his bag out again.

Gordon had to force himself to walk closer, one hand trembling as it clutched the handle of his knife. Once he was close enough, he grabbed his bag from the bean's fingers and scurried back out of reach.

He didn't want to take his eyes off the bean, but he had to double check his bag. The crackers were still there—crushed, but edible. His climbing hook was too. Anything else wasn't important, he had what he needed.

"cool. so, mouseman, you got a name or something?" The bean asked, drumming his fingers on the table again.

"I- Gordon. Gordon Freeman." He stammered, running his fingers through the fluffy fur on the end of his tail.

"hell yeah, that's a fuckin  _ name _ ." The bean cackled, leaning back in his chair again. Gordon flinched at the loud sound, ears pressing flat against his head as he stared nervously.

"Do- um." He mumbled, not wanting to press his luck. "What's- what's your name?"

"bbbbbbbenrey." The bean responded, picking at his teeth with a finger. Gordon swallowed nervously, unable to tear his eyes away from the beartrap maw.

Benrey seemed to notice, and shot him a wicked grin that made him shiver.  _ Was that a threat? A warning? _ He couldn't help but wonder.

"so. feetman-"

"It's _ Freeman _ ."

" _ feetman. _ what are you? pretty sure humans don't come in funsize, bro." Benrey leaned forwards again, folding his arms and resting his chin on top of them.

_ Of course.  _ Gordon really shouldn't have expected any different—it was the first thing  _ that bean _ had said on that day. Almost two years, now.

"I- I'm a borrower." He mumbled, dropping his gaze to his feet. "Not supposed to be seen by humans."

Benrey let out a loud cackle. "don't worry, bro, m'not human."

_ What the fuck does that mean. _

Gordon stared at him in silence, mouth slightly agape. Benrey just grinned back with his mouth full of sharp teeth.

"anyways. cool to meet you, roomie. m'goin back to bed."

And then Benrey just… got up and left.

Gordon waited in shock for a few moments, certain that it was a trick and that he would be back any second, but several minutes passed and he was still alone in the dark kitchen.

"... What?" He whispered to himself, pulling his climbing hook out with mechanical motions. Climbing off the table and making his way home was purely done by muscle memory, he had no memory of it—one minute he was on the table, the next he was curled up in bed.

Safe, whole, and alive.


End file.
